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She said such a development would also adequately prepare and save lives and infrastructure.
Officially opening the second session of AMCOMET in Victoria Falls yesterday, VP Mujuru said with the increasing devastating impacts of weather related disasters due to the accelerating change in the climate, the time had come for Africa to join the rest of the world so that it could monitor extreme weather events.
Thirty-seven African countries are represented with 29 ministers attending the conference.
“I would like to add my voice to the increasing calls for AMCOMET to spearhead the establishment of an African Meteorology Space Programme leading to the launch and operation of an African Meteorological Satellite,” said VP Mujuru.
“With the increasing devastating impacts of weather related disasters due to the accelerating change in the climate, the time has come for Africa to join the rest of the world to be able to monitor extreme weather events.
“These are becoming more severe and costly in terms of life and property. Your ability to provide timely meteorological early warning services and forecasts will save the continent of billions of dollars every year. I have been advised that the costs of launching and maintaining the satellite are not astronomical and are miniscule compared to the gains to be made.”
She said Africa had vast financial resources adding that what was needed was the will and commitment from politicians, technocrats and technical experts.
“We need to develop our own meteorological products, strengthen our human capacities and use our own financial resources. Establishing the AMCOMET Trust Fund is an urgent must, therefore, if Africa has the regional African Satellite Communication Organisation (RASCOM) satellite on communications, why should AMCOMET not have its own? I look forward to witnessing the launch of the first African meteorological satellite,” said VP Mujuru.
She called on African countries to capacitate appropriately their meteorological authorities so that they could adequately provide early warnings on disasters.
“Often we turn to our weather authorities only after a calamity such as drought, flood or tsunami and blame them for their failures to produce accurate forecasts or inability to provide warning. We are blind, most times not deliberately to the fact that they too have immense problems, chief among them being inadequate resources, technology and equipment for effective weather forecasting, early warning system, research and development,” she said.
“On our part as governments, we have to change the way we have been handling weather and climate issues. We need to move away from crisis management and become more proactive, and hence less costly and well-coordinated responses. I challenge AMCOMET to find a mechanism to make sure that warming reach the highest decision makers directly and in the shortest possible time so that we act swiftly, appropriately and effectively.”
Addressing the same function, World Meteorolo-gical Organisation (WMO) secretary-general Mr Michel Jarraud said there was a need for a concerted effort in dealing with climate change, which he said was affecting the socio- economic programmes in member countries.
“Climate variability and change were posing significant challenges in strategies and programmes supporting peace, security and development in Africa, particularly, agriculture development and food security, disaster risk reduction, water resource management, access to health and sanitation, all of the priority areas of the Global Framework for
Climate Services (GFCS), the development of which was unanimously decided by the Third World Climate Conference (WCC-3) in 2009,” he said.
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